The Legend
by MinaHakvoort
Summary: Series of one-shots. First: Sometimes three days are enough for a legend to be born. Second: the Black Professor and Albus Severus. Translation of valley's fics "Черный Декан".
1. The Legend

Harry could have sworn it started the day after Fred, Lupin and Tonks had died. He could have also sworn that he had nothing to do with it, although no one tried to incriminate him. But he felt sick when he heard that they had seen Snape at night in the Slytherin common room.

Any attempts to find out who exactly had seen him and what the Professor had been doing there ended in nightmare. All Slytherins, from a first-year to Goyle, readily confirmed that the former Head of the House spent his nights sitting on a sofa in the Slytherin common room, speaking to no one, and left silently with the first rays of dawn, disappearing into the wall. Until the next midnight.

'He could not have become a ghost,' Harry said despairingly to Ron and Hermione. 'I'm sure, he couldn't.'

'Nearly Headless Nick assures that no new ghost appeared in the castle,' Hermione replied. 'It's a fib.'

'A fib?' Ron laughed. 'Everyone tells the same. They saw him there.'

'They lie,' Harry replied quietly. 'Snape couldn't have stayed here. Besides, Nearly Headless Nick wouldn't have lied to Hermione. Ghosts haven't heard about him, which means Slytherins made it up.'

But rumours about Snape's ghost were so fascinating that the news had spread around the school in a flash, and even the teaching staff was infected. When the Ravenclaw fifth-years asked Slughorn about it in Potions, the Professor hesitated, but finally admitted to seeing Snape; and Trelawney related what Snape supposedly told her, in a tragic whisper, to anyone willing to listen.

In several hours the tales about the former Head of Slytherin House reached utter absurdity. Harry, Ron and Hermione learned about it from Luna Lovegood on their way to dinner.

'No one knows when he died,' Luna's face was shining with absolute happiness. 'Yesterday Draco Malfoy told that all the previous year Hogwarts had a ghost Headmaster.'

'What the hell!' Harry exploded. 'Are you guys mad or what? I saw him the day before yesterday! He was killed by Voldemort!'

It was not wise of him. Hannah Abbot was passing by and decided to contribute to the conversation.

'How can you be so sure who has killed him and when?' she asked. 'No one knows.'

Harry recognized the argument to be pointless and regretted his rash words, but Ron didn't want to give up.

'Snape was killed by Voldemort yesterday,' he stated flatly. 'His ghost couldn't have been the Headmaster.'

'Well, Pansy Parkinson said she smelt rat since September,' Hannah shrugged and left for her table.

'It's another Slytherin plot,' Harry spoke through clenched teeth. 'Malfoy is behind it.'

'What for?' Hermione inquired reasonably.

'Because he's a jerk,' snapped Ron. 'There's no ghost.'

'Everyone knows that Professor Snape has become a ghost and haunts the dungeons,' Luna stated calmly. 'They saw him there. They even say that it was Harry who ordered him to stay in the dungeons, to keep him from scaring first-years. But I don't believe this.'

And she proceeded to the Great Hall, paying no heed to Ron's flabbergasted expression.

'And yet she believes we had a ghost Headmaster!' Ron exclaimed. 'Hell, we cannot even prove anything now.'

'Three days are not enough to create a legend,' Hermione said thoughtfully, looking after Luna.

'As you can see, it is enough for us,' Harry snapped, angry at Slytherins in general and at Malfoy in particular. 'Ron is right. There's nothing we can do about it now.'


	2. First Impressions

'My name is…' Albus wanted to give his full name but felt shy for some unknown reason. 'I was named after two Hogwarts Headmasters.'

'Why not three?' a blonde boy plopped himself onto the bed.

Albus was perplexed. Really, why not?

'Because you should know where to stop,' he answered finally.

'And I'm Scorpius Malfoy,' the blonde boy examined the dormitory, interest clearly written on his face, and dangled his legs. 'You have any sweets?'

'No…'

'It's a pity, we have no one but girls in our year, right?'

'Not at all,' Albus was surprised at himself, but the idea of a bunch of other Slytherins in the dormitory scared him. It would be safer with just two of them.

'I'm Albus Severus Potter'.

Malfoy stopped dangling his legs and stared at his roommate, dumbfounded.

'What?'

'Albus Severus Potter! What's so strange about it?'

'I know who's Albus, I know who's Severus, and I know who's Potter.'

'So what?'

'That's a very strange combination,' Scorpius fell silent. 'I will call you Als.'

'Why?'

'It's convenient.'

Albus didn't know if he liked that.

'My elder brother James calls me Al.'

Besides information about the name, the words contained a subtle warning about the existence of an elder brother.

'Okay,' Malfoy agreed easily. 'Then Al you are.'

* * *

'Al, how could this happen?' James wistfully eyed a letter from their parents congratulating Al on his sorting to the Slytherin House. 'Is it true you have the ghost of the Black Professor haunting the dungeons?'

'Sure,' Malfoy intervened. He seemed to appear out of nowhere. 'But you mustn't talk about the Black Professor. He doesn't like it.'

'Cool!' James marveled.

Albus was speechless. His newly acquired House seemed to get better every moment.

'But girls do not see him,' he stated unexpectedly.

'We don't have anything like that,' James couldn't hide his disappointment. 'Al, have you already seen him? What's he like?'

'He's black,' Scorpius interfered again. 'At night he groans in the corridors and then starts to bang his head against the wall and calls: "Kathy! Kathy!" '

'Al, is it true?' James inquired again. 'Have you seen him?'

'Yes,' Albus stated firmly, with a thankful glance at Malfoy.

James was determined to find out about the ghost and the Kathy. At school no one knew much, except that the stories about the Black Professor go back to many centuries ago, so during the holidays he interrogated his father.

'The rumors about Snape's ghost had started when I was still at school,' Harry explained to his son at dinner. 'That's not true.'

'But Al saw him!'

'I did,' Albus confirmed resolutely. As any Slytherin, he was ready to argue himself hoarse to prove he had really met the ghost professor, who decided to spend eternity in the dungeons.

'And what was he doing?' Harry inquired, tongue in his cheek.

'Banging his head against the wall and calling "Kathy! Kathy!" '

Harry dropped his fork and it fell down with a clink.

'Who has made up this nonsense?' Ginny asked crossly, picking up the fork.

'It's no nonsense!' Albus flushed. 'We saw it, Malfoy and I!'

'So you heard him?' Harry asked intensely. 'With Malfoy?'

'Yes.'

Locked up in his room for lying, the boy had plenty of time to find the source of his problems.

'Who is Kathy?' he asked Scorpius when they met again after Christmas.

'Have no idea,' the other replied carelessly. 'That's the way Grandpa teases Snape, when he thinks too much.'


End file.
